Stats / Shondell Quotes / Highlights
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 17 Boilermakers hung with No. 4 Minnesota for three sets, but couldn't pull off the upset, falling 3-1 Sunday afternoon. The Golden Gophers won the match 25-20, 25-21, 21-25, 25-14.
Senior Annie Drews paced the Purdue attack with 23 kills on a .286 hitting percentage and adding 12 digs and three blocks. Redshirt junior Faye Adelaja and sophomore Danielle Cuttino put down seven kills apiece. Redshirt sophomore Ashley Evans added five kills to her 40 assist, 14-dig double double. Senior Sam Epenesa and sophomore Azariah Stahl managed four kills each, while sophomore Lydia Dimke added three kills in the final two sets.
Defensively, senior Amanda Neill pulled up 18 digs, while serving up three aces. Evans (14) and Drews (12) also added double digit efforts, while freshman Alexa Smith chipped in eight digs. Adelaja led the team with four blocks, while Drews and Cuttino added three apiece.
The teams split the first 28 points of the night with neither owning more than a two-point edge en route to a 14-14 tie. Minnesota broke the tie with four of the next five points to go up 18-15. Purdue responded with a 5-1 run of its own, including two kills by Drews, an ace by Smith and a solo block by Cuttino, to take a 20-19 lead. The Gophers called timeout and scored six straight out of the break to steal away the set at 25-20. Purdue put up four blocks in the stanza, but was outhit .242 to .161. Drews posted a team-best five kills in the stanza.
The teams were dead even through 24 points of Set 2, tied at 12-12 after a kill by Adelaja. Minnesota scored five of the next six to go ahead 17-13. Purdue countered with a 4-0 run featuring two kills each by Drews and Cuttino to knot the score at 17. The Gophers got three kills and a block to go up 21-17 and prompt Purdue to use both of its timeouts. Cuttino put down a kill after the break, but Purdue faced a 23-18 deficit soon after. The Boilermakers scored three straight from there with a kill and a block by Drews and an ace by Neill to make it 23-21 and force a Minnesota timeout. The Gophers got a kill and an ace after that to cap a 25-21 win. Minnesota hit .389 to Purdue's .275 effort, which saw Drews rack up eight kills.
The Boilermakers raced out to a 9-4 lead in Set 3 as Neill and Dimke served up aces and Drews added a trio of kills. Trailing 11-8, Minnesota scored four of the next five to knot the score at 12. The teams split the next six points, before Purdue scored three in a row, with kills by Smith and Cuttino to push it to 18-15 Boilermakers. Up just one at 18-17, Purdue managed five of the next six including a trio of Minnesota miscues. A kill by Drews gave Purdue its first set point attempt at 24-19. Three serves later Drews buried her 22nd kill of the night to give the Boilermakers the 25-21 win and extend the match. Purdue holds Minnesota to .098 effort in the stanza as Drews adds nine more kills.
Minnesota used a 7-1 run, including a trio of aces to take an early 10-4 in Set 4. A kill by Evans ended the rally momentarily, but the Gophers scored the next three to go ahead 13-5 and force Purdue to use its final timeout. Down 14-5, the Boilermakers scored four straight with kills by Drews and Dimke and a stuff by Dimke and Cuttino. A UM service error and an ace by Neill cut it to seven at 18-11, but Minnesota answered with three straight points. An Adelaja kill and a Gopher error kept Purdue in it at 21-13, but the Gophers scored four of the final five to take the match 25-14. Minnesota outhit the Boilermakers .290 to .000 in the set.
No. 17 Purdue (17-6, 8-4 B1G) returns to action at 7 p.m. Wednesday when they welcome No. 9 Nebraska to Belin Court for a match that will air live on BTN.